1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to multi-type air conditioners, and more particularly, to a multi-type air conditioner with a plurality of distributors refrigerant thereto can be shutoff.
2. Background of the Related Art
In general, the air conditioner, an appliance for cooling or heating room spaces, such as living spaces, restaurants, and offices, cools or heats the room space by circulating refrigerant with a compressor and heat exchangers.
The air conditioner succeeds to development of a multi-type air conditioner which can cool or heat rooms at the same time without being influenced from an external temperature or environment for maintaining more comfortable room environments, resulting to cool or heat entire rooms under the same operation mode.
A related art multi-type air conditioner is provided with one or more than one outdoor unit connected to a plurality of indoor units installed in respective rooms, and operative only in one mode of cooling or heating for controlling room temperatures.
However, nowadays, as the room space becomes larger, a room structure becomes complex, and positions and services of rooms are diversified, room environments of the rooms differ from one another. Particularly, a room equipped with machinery or computer has a room temperature higher than other rooms due to heat from operation of the equipment.
Consequently, even though some of the rooms require cooling, while other rooms require heating, the related art multi-type air conditioner can not deal with the requirements.
When the room structure is complex, there are not only a limitation in distribution of the refrigerant to the rooms with only one distributor, but also difficulty in installation.
Moreover, the long pipeline coming from the complex room structure causes pressure drop of the refrigerant introduced into the indoor units, to drop a refrigerating efficiency.
According to above requirements, development of a multi-type air conditioner of concurrent cooling and heating type is required, which is operative in an optimal operation mode pertinent to room environments, i.e., rooms that require cooling are operated in a cooling mode, and rooms that require heating are operated in a heating mode.
Moreover, there are ceaseless requirements for development of a multi-type air conditioner which can secure freedom of installation, and sustain a supercooled state of the refrigerant despite of pressure drop occurred in pipelines connected to the indoor units.